David Quinn is making a pretty significant change when the Rangers’ Drive to the Deadline commences Friday night at the Garden with the opener of a home-and-home against the 31st-overall Red Wings.
And maybe, just maybe, the Feb. 24 trade deadline does indeed have something to do with this.
The coach is switching his top defense pair, elevating Ryan Lindgren onto the shutdown pair with Jacob Trouba on the right while Brady Skjei moves down to skate with Adam Fox. This represents a notable shift from Quinn and the staff after months of stability. (At least regarding the combinations, that is.)
Skjei and Trouba had partnered for the past 28 games. Beyond that, Lindgren has been paired with Fox (with whom he had been previously paired in a pair of World Junior Tournaments for Team USA) for every one of his 38 games since his Oct. 28 promotion from the AHL Wolf Pack. Every one. The Lindgren-Fox pair has been extremely impressive, the rookies bringing out the best in each other.
Still, it was time for a change. The Skjei-Trouba pairing seemed increasingly vulnerable, especially against the rush. Neither player is at his best, both inconsistent, probably both pressing, so if it was becoming problematic, that one could help the other. In fact, Quinn said he had been contemplating this move before the break that ended with consecutive defeats to the Blue Jackets and Islanders in pretty blah performances.
“I just haven’t loved a couple of the pairings, and we’ve been talking about switching the last three or four games,” said the coach, who is leaving the Marc Staal-Tony DeAngelo unit intact. “I want to see what these pairings look like, if we can get better production.”
The coach presumably was not referring to offensive production, but rather 200×85 effectiveness. Most importantly, there is a hope that elevating the confidence, menace and simple yet hard game Lindgren brings to the table will help Trouba, who has been willing but erratic in his adjustment to New York and top-pair status.
Quinn said “yes” when asked if the move could be considered an endorsement of No. 55. “I think Lindgren and Fox have really been good, so we were hesitant to break them up. But we’ve been toying with this for awhile, and it just seems that this is the right time to see how it looks.”
(My interpretation: If Lindgren can play top-pair minutes, perhaps management feels more comfortable trading Skjei?)
This is, no mistake, a step up and a challenge for Lindgren. Trouba’s inconsistencies aside, he does eat up an average of 18:12 per night at even-strength, a majority of it against the opposition’s top guns. That is not nothing, just as it was not nothing when Neal Pionk handled a load of 16:48 per night at even-strength last year. Lindgren, on the other hand, averages 13:18 at even strength per night, seventh among club defensemen, if you include Libor Hajek.
But the challenge, of course, has been embraced by Lindgren, who is in his second pro season.
Charles Wenzelberg/New York Post
“No question that the coaches are [showing faith in me],” said the 21-year-old acquired from Boston as what has become the most significant piece of the return in the 2018 deadline deal for Rick Nash. “I like where my game is at. I think I’m playing well. I think it will be a good thing, You have the chance to play with Jacob Trouba, I’m excited about that.
“I’m going to play my game regardless of my partner. Foxy is so dynamic offensively I knew he was going to jump and Troubs can go, too, so if I’m playing D, I like to play it.”
Lindgren was renowned for his character, leadership qualities, toughness and stay-at-home ability. Quinn, though, has seen more than that.
“The thing I’ve really liked about Lindgren, which I think has surprised all of us, is his ability with the puck and how he’s been able to get us out of our end,” said the coach. “I think Troubs, when he’s on his game, he does that, as well.
“It’s just a gut feeling. We want to see how it looks. They both play with a little bit of a snarl — maybe they can give us that more consistent shutdown D pairing that we’re looking for. We’ll see how it goes.”
Short term and potentially long term.
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